Album Premiere/Interview: Hoist The Colors – “Miles To Go Before We Sleep”

Los Angeles seven-piece Irish/Americana-influenced folk punks Hoist The Colors will be releasing their new album “Miles To Go Before We Sleep” next week Hardline Entertainment but you don’t have to wait until then to hear it. Dying Scene is very pleased to be bringing you a stream of the entire album which you can blast here while you read a little Q&A we did with singer/mandolin player Josh Linden.

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Did you work with Fletcher on the album? What was that like?

We didn’t work directly with Fletcher in the studio, but he definitely gave our manager/producer Ken Seaton feedback throughout the recording process, especially during mixing. Ken has been friends with Fletcher and everyone in Pennywise since the very, very beginning, so it’s been great to hear his feedback and incorporate it into the final product. Fletcher has just been really supportive in general, giving us guidance along the way, and we feel really fortunate for that. He’s all about helping younger bands come up.

The album was also mixed by Darian Rundall, who recorded a lot of the classic Epitaph albums back in the day, so it was great to have his ear throughout the process as well.

How’s the folk-punk scene in El Segundo?

We’re pretty much the only folk-punk band in El Segundo (or the South Bay for that matter), but there are some great ones in Southern California, including Lexington Field (San Diego) and the Brick Top Blaggers (Orange County). There’s also a great band out of El Segundo called Hang Dog Expression who play really mellow, thoughtful folk music that we’re fans of.

Despite being kind of a small town, El Segundo has historically had a pretty good punk scene. A ton of good musicians and some great bands have come out here, including The Ghost Inside (their singer Vigil is a friend and went to High School with us), and older bands that are no longer active like Final Fight (Deathwish Inc.), The Damage Done (Rivalry Records), and Proof of Identity. Beyond that, El Segundo is a really tight-knit community, and the support we get from the people here have helped us grow our fan base considerably.

Do you have any touring plans?

Absolutely, we have some touring plans in the works, but nothing we can announce quite yet. It will be after the first of the year. But we are extremely eager to hit the road.

What can you tell us about this album?

This record was a blast to make. We wrote it in about 6 months, and then spent the entire summer – basically Memorial Day to Labor Day – recording and mixing with Ken Seaton at his studio in Hermosa Beach. We really took our time to get everything the way we wanted it, and are blown away by the results. This is the record we set out to make, which is an amazing feeling.

It was also great to experiment with a few new sounds too. Our guitar player’s dad played five string banjo on one track, and my uncle Tony Goodreau of Hangdog Expression played stand up bass on a song as well.

What does the album title mean?

The album title is a reference to the Robert Frost poem “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening.” We thought it captured the spirit of the songs we’d written perfectly, as well as the overall feeling we have as a band. As the songs came together, certain themes and images kept coming up again and again – things like travel, freedom, breaking away from the norm, taking risks, having the courage to follow your dreams, etc. We felt that particular line represented those themes well.

On the same token, we’re ready to do big things as a band, and have a ton that we want to get accomplished.

What has your relationship with Hardline Entertainment been like?

It’s been great. It’s enabled us to make a great record, first and foremost. The label’s founder, Ken Seaton, has a pretty solid roster between Hardline and Viking Funeral (the label he runs together with Fletcher), so all the bands help each other out and cross promote whenever we can. It’s great to have the support of bands we look up to like Death By Stereo and Authority Zero. Not only does it help us move the band forward, but it means a lot when bands you respect are on your side.

Anything else?

Thanks for taking the time, and look for us on tour in 2013! We’ll have a video for the album’s first single “Gordie Lachance” debuting in about a month, so look for that as well. Check out all the great Hardline bands at www.hardlineentertainment.com.

Band Spotlight

If you're a fan of that "...And Out Come The Wolves" punk meets rock 'n roll sound, and dig the vocal stylings of Lars Frederiksen you're going to want to check out Knockin Bones. The three piece is a new band out of Austin, Texas formed by Bass Line Bums' Marc Alan and they've just released their debut EP "Saved My Soul" as a free download. Give it a listen below.
Saved My Soul by Knockin Bones